


Blossom

by Chisotahn



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff, M/M, Victuuri Week 2017, there's still room for episode 7 reaction fic right
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-07
Updated: 2017-02-07
Packaged: 2018-09-22 17:17:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9617522
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chisotahn/pseuds/Chisotahn
Summary: Nothing about Yuuri had been what Victor had expected, from the banquet to that first day in Hasetsu, revealing what he’d thought was a very different person from the one he’d nursed a crush on for months.(Unrepentant fluff set during episode 7, written for the prompt "surprises" for Day 1 of Victuuri Week 2017.)





	

_Should I just kiss you or something?_

He hadn’t planned to say, that, not exactly - it was just one more thing in the long list of Things Victor Nikiforov Blurted Out in Yuuri’s Presence. Something that slipped out while he was distracted, desperate for something to put paid to Yuuri’s tears. Maybe it would make Yuuri laugh, or step back in shock, or turn red, or… or _anything_ other than continuing to shatter right in front of him.

It did exactly none of those things. 

And, for several horrifying minutes as they waited rinkside, Victor felt like a good half of Yuuri’s wrenching fear had crawled into Victor instead, because what if he’d ruined Yuuri’s prospects today through his dreadful mishandling? He _knew_ how easily Yuuri could stumble, how long it took him to get back up. Why had he been so careless? 

He could feel Yakov’s gaze on him, appraising and finding him wanting; even after months apart, he was still sensitive to his coach’s moods. Victor silently took Yuuri’s skate guards from him, then held out the poodle tissue holder as Yuuri pulled several tissues free to blow his nose. 

Then Yuuri dropped the wad of tissues, and Victor quickly leaned forward to grab at them, freezing in place as he felt Yuuri’s gentle poke, followed by a pat. He looked up at Yuuri, bemused, but Yuuri just gave him a lopsided smile before skating away, coming to rest at center ice as the crowd’s cheers enveloped him. 

Victor could see Yuuri steadying himself, and as the music began Yuuri seemed to shed his weariness all at once, replacing it with that soft, searching vulnerability that made Victor’s throat ache. And then, to Victor’s surprise, Yuuri smiled, the expression shifting the tenor of his movements into something sweeter still. _Why is he smiling?_ That hadn’t been the plan for this section, but Victor couldn’t deny that it added something to the performance. Victor’s hands clenched into fists as he watched Yuuri’s every move, the choreography thrumming under them both, marking the path Yuuri had to follow to make it through the next few minutes. 

_Quad toe, double toe- good._ Victor nodded sharply in approval. It was strange how relaxed Yuuri seemed out there, in sharp contrast to Victor’s tension. The quad salchow wrested a “perfect, Yuuri!” from Victor’s throat. Maybe they _could_ do this. Maybe everything would be okay after all.

Victor flinched as Yuuri touched one hand to the ice as he landed the triple axel, that seemingly simple error bringing all the tension flooding back. But Yuuri still seemed immune, even as he over-rotated the last jump in his longer combination, making Victor wince. Yuuri was making mistakes, but it didn’t seem to be because he was tired. Victor wasn’t sure where Yuuri was finding the energy. How much longer could he keep this up? 

Triple lutz, triple toe, _perfect._ Victor inhaled sharply, pressing his hands to his cheeks as if to keep himself from flying apart. _Just a little further. Just a little more, Yuuri, come on-_

He caught the discrepancy in the entry, but didn’t have time to process it before Yuuri was in the air, and Victor’s jaw dropped as he realized, counting rotations automatically. _One, two, three, four- how is he-_ Victor just stared as Yuuri crashed to the ice and pushed himself up again, continuing into the final spin as if nothing had happened, as if he hadn’t just attempted - very nearly landed - something completely absurd. 

_Oh. Oh my._

_That was for me._

Victor couldn’t look away from Yuuri as he struck his final pose, that beautiful lilt that had been all Yuuri’s idea. Their eyes met, though Victor knew Yuuri probably couldn’t tell, not without his glasses on. 

The roar of the crowd eclipsed everything then, and Victor remembered to breathe, bringing his hands up to cover his face, trying to regain some sense of composure. His heart was pounding in his chest as if he’d been the one out on the ice, and he was already replaying the sweep of Yuuri’s quadruple flip in his mind. He’d never seen Yuuri even attempt that jump before - every time Yuuri had mimicked one of Victor’s programs, including in the viral video that had brought Victor to Hasetsu, Yuuri had replaced any quad flips with a triple. 

Suddenly, it became very important indeed to get to him. To do something, anything - for the second time in an hour, Victor had no idea what, only that he had to make Yuuri see how much that had meant, impress upon Yuuri just how strong he was, how well he’d done. 

Victor started to run, and he heard the answering swish of Yuuri’s skates. As Victor skidded into the kiss and cry, he turned towards the rink exit, saw Yuuri lift his arms, saw the excitement and joy in Yuuri’s face, and he knew words wouldn’t suffice. Not in a million years. 

And he hadn’t planned this either, not exactly, the leap forward, the embrace, the gentle cradling of Yuuri’s head in one hand so he wouldn’t hurt him. But _oh_ , he’d wanted to kiss Yuuri for so long, and he saw Yuuri’s brown eyes widen before his own eyes slipped closed, his lips finding Yuuri’s at last. He felt shock jolt through Yuuri, the smothered gasp of surprise, and then, _thank god_ , the softening of Yuuri’s lips under his, so slight but so unmistakable. 

They hit the ice with a thud, and Victor didn’t care one bit about the way the fall jarred his knees, because he couldn’t hurt Yuuri, sweet, impossible Yuuri, who’d managed to scrape up victory out of nothing. Yuuri, who was staring up at him in amazement, mouth hanging open; whose hands at last came to rest against his back, holding on tight. 

Victor felt weightless, impossibly fond. “This was the only thing I could think of to surprise you more than you’ve surprised me,” he informed Yuuri, and was incredibly gratified to see Yuuri’s surprise melt into softness, and he only kept from kissing Yuuri again by sheer force of will. 

“Really?” Yuuri breathed, and Victor chuckled, gently stroking his gloved fingers through Yuuri’s hair. 

“Really,” he confirmed, and put his other hand down to push them both upright, because even if there weren’t any other skaters in need of the ice, it probably wasn’t a good idea to lay on top of Yuuri in public for long. Once Yuuri was sitting up, Victor scooted back until he could use the barrier to get to his feet, stepping off the ice for better footing before holding out one hand to help Yuuri up. 

The crowd felt very far away. Oh, he could still hear them generating that heady blend of surprise and adulation that he’d adored for so long, but they weren’t the most important thing in the arena right now. That title went to Yuuri, his cheeks still flushed as he worked his skate guards over the blades before picking up the tissue box, holding it out to Victor with an almost shy smile. 

...he’d kissed Yuuri. He’d actually done that, and Yuuri hadn’t frozen in horror or fled while stammering apologies. 

Victor took the tissues, then smoothly stepped behind Yuuri, resting one hand on Yuuri’s shoulder as they took the few remaining steps to the kiss and cry proper. Yuuri sat down on the bench and Victor followed, trying to scrape up some modicum of professionalism. He was pretty sure Yakov hadn’t gained any particular respect for his coaching acumen after that display, but at the moment Victor really didn’t care. Still, he had some sense as to how far he could push things with Yuuri in public, and he wanted to preserve the sweetness that lingered between them for as long as possible. 

As the scores were announced, Victor let out a long breath. Second place. A true wonder, considering the hash Victor had made of things. Yuuri truly was extraordinary. He gently squeezed Yuuri’s shoulder and watched the realization sweep over him. _Silver, my Yuuri. One step closer to the Final._

Yuuri beamed. “Oh… Phichit! He did it, Victor!” 

Victor blinked at him, then smiled fondly. “Yes, he did. And so did you, Yuuri. You both did magnificently.” 

“I did.” Yuuri turned that bright grin on Victor now, warming like the sun. “Thank you, Victor.”

“Don’t thank me,” Victor said, raising one eyebrow at Yuuri. “I didn’t do anything.” Yuuri had pulled himself up alone.

“You did, though,” Yuuri insisted, and for a moment one of Yuuri’s hands came up to brush over his lips, a look of wonder in his brown eyes. “Victor, I-” 

“Later,” Victor said quietly, turning his head; he could see the first of the media approaching, evidently satisfied with their picture-taking and ready to move on to interviews. “Later, Yuuri, I promise.” Yuuri shifted a little to lean against his side. Victor felt his expression go soft again, completely lost.

Oh, he was in trouble. He’d been in trouble ever since the banquet, really, but now it was definitely coming home to roost.

“I trust you,” Yuuri said, low, then straightened again, turning towards the approaching press. Victor’s heart leapt in his chest, and it took every bit of self-control he possessed to not grab Yuuri and bowl over everything between the two of them and a place where they could talk in private - _really_ talk, figure out exactly what he’d meant by kissing Yuuri, and what Yuuri had meant by kissing back.

But it would keep, for now. Yuuri trusted him. That was all the reassurance Victor needed. 

So Victor stayed put, keeping his hand on Yuuri’s shoulder, watching over Yuuri as the interviews began, a warm and giddy certainty curling through his heart. Nothing about Yuuri had been what he’d expected, from the banquet to that first day in Hasetsu, revealing what he’d thought was a very different person from the one he’d nursed a crush on for months. 

But Yuuri was still Yuuri, and the whole had proven even more hopelessly intriguing than the small part Victor had met at the banquet. Yes, there had been something alluring about Yuuri’s easy confidence and drunken affection, but watching him open up now, that slow, precious unfurling…

_I trust you._

Victor smiled, squeezed Yuuri’s shoulder once more, and thanked everything he could think of for beautiful surprises.

**Author's Note:**

> Sometimes you just need to roll around in the feels. While screaming.
> 
> Also, sharp-eyed readers familiar with my other YoI fanfic might notice a certain line is a callback (call...forward?) to my post-canon Victuuri fic [The Spaces Shaped for You](http://archiveofourown.org/works/9274610). Which was very deliberate, I assure you. :)
> 
> Thank you for reading, and thank you to the organizers of [Victuuri Week](http://victuuri-week.tumblr.com) for setting up this event!


End file.
